Hi all! Today was so amazing! We visited Senda Verde animal sanctuary and I have to say it was one of the most amazing experiences. Vicki and Marcelo had not planned to save animals, in fact, Marcelo was previously working with USAID in their Mapas Yungas program. They had opened an eco lodge and Marcelo happened to rescue a monkey who had been destined for the illegal trafficking market. There was no turning back when they rescued a spectacaled Andean bear. I was so inspired by the work that they do, the animals are so happy and well cared for and you can tell how much they truly love Marcelo and all those who have rescued them. They have so much space to wander and be free. The most precious spider monkey actually jumped on my shoulder and hugged my head for a while, it was really amazing, I'm convinced that the monkey healed all the stomach issues that I was having. I was so touched and moved by the experience that we had today that I made arrangements to return to the sanctuary and volunteer for a short time after the program and hopefully I'll be able to return this winter and volunteer for several weeks. I was just in awe of all the amazing work that they do there and desperately want to be a part of it.
We then went to Coca Wasi, the coca museum here in Coroico. The man who runs the museum, Dr Jorge Hurtado, also put together the coca museum in La Paz with his wife. There was a very noticeable difference between the two museums. In La Paz, it's somewhat more reserved while Coca Wasi was extremely 'in your face'. The graphics and imagery did not beat around the bush in any sense. It was meant to jerk you into the reality of the gruesome history of coca and the drug war and the blood-soaked roots of capitalism and globalization. The art there was really amazing too, it was all meant to make one uncomfortable to the point of action and I'm not convinced that there should be a Coca museum of that caliber in every city so that people can be educated on this extremely important topic.
Today was unbelievable inspiring and educational.
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